Martin Rundkvist's blog for 2006. Archaeology, skepticism, Sweden. And books and music and stuff.Continued at Aardvarchaeology.

Friday, June 02, 2006

A Flag From the Hand of the King

My old school is half a century old this year. My son goes there as well. I just got an e-mail from the headmistress with info about the semicentenary celebrations. How do you like this?

On this great occasion the school's festival committee has applied for, and been granted, the honour of receiving a flag from the hand of His Majesty the King during the celebrations of the National Day at Skansen [a museum park displaying early rural architecture]. Our two pupil's council chairpeople N.N. and N.N., together with second-year teacher N.N., will represent Igelboda school at the ceremony on 6 June. We all look forward to this with great joy and pride.

The honour of receiving a flag from the king!? Great joy and pride? I hardly know where to start. As Kevin Barnes put it,

On our trip to England I noticed something obscenePeople still actually give a shit about the Queen

Sweden hasn't really had a national day before now, and somebody's trying really hard to drum up popular enthusiasm for it. I wish my kid went to a school that taught him that kings and nations are undemocratic holdovers from an evil past. It's a disgrace that Sweden is still nominally a monarchy. Republic now!